Men's Water Polo Splits on Day One of MPSF Regional

ERIE, Pa. - The Austin College men's water polo team opened up MPSF play on the campus of Penn State Behrend on Saturday, with the 'Roos dropping their first game of the weekend 19-12 against Augustana before bouncing back with a thrilling 14-13 victory over the host school in game two. The 'Roos are now 3-6 overall and 1-1 in conference play.

In game one of the weekend, the 'Roos found themselves narrowly trailing Augustana 3-2 after the opening quarter, and a big offensive second period sent the teams into halftime with Austin College behind by a score of 9-6. The 'Roos cut the margin to 12-11 heading into the fourth, but Augustana outpaced Austin College 7-1 in the final frame to make it a 19-12 result. 

Jack Stack, Carlos Camarena, Preston Fiala, and Greyson Gaworecki each scored two goals to lead Austin College, while Joshua Nelms, Aidan Wade, Owen Altermatt, and Matthew Leeworthy tallied once each. Stack added three assists and Gaworecki had a pair of helpers also, while Caleb Maddox had eight blocks and Jordan Pomier added seven while the pair split time in goal. 

Penn State Behrend got off to a hot start against the 'Roos in game two of the day, outscoring Austin College 6-3 in the first quarter. PSB would take an 11-7 lead into halftime, but the 'Roos started to chip away at the margin, locking Behrend down defensively in the third quarter and only allowing one goal while putting three in the back of the cage to make it 12-10 heading into the fourth. 

Austin College's outstanding defensive effort continued into the final frame, with the 'Roos once again holding PSB to just one goal in the period. Austin College leveled the score with two minutes left on a tally by Sebastian Scheier, and with just 25 seconds remaining, Gaworecki scored what proved to be the game-winner on an assist from Stack, making it a 14-13 final.

Maddox made four blocks while Pomier had three blocks while allowing only two second half goals as the duo once again split time in the cage, while Fiala and Wade led the way offensively with four goals apiece. Gaworecki scored twice, while Scheier, Stack, Camarena, and Leeworthy scored once each. Stack finished the game with four assists and Wade added three steals.